Sellers must offer at lest 5% discount when making an offer to a Buyer - a new restriction

[beautifulbeauty2012]

Not that that option ever worked to get a sale (honestly, waste of time, but I still was sending, so I knew I was using tools provided - not a single sale after maybe 200 offers sent), but until today`s afternoon, the price you are offering to a buyer must be at least 5% less the original price, otherwise you won`t be able to send an offer.

The percentage was not restricted before, and you could send any % off below the original selling price. More restrictions, that`s all. 

[kataggr-44]

Even when make an offer is something forced on a seller and not a choice?

[pburn]

Kind of pointless to send an offer that's 1% or 2% or 3% or 4% off the original price, isn't it? That really would be a waste of time for both you and the potential buyer. If you were making that kind of offer, it's not surprising you didn't get any sales from those 200 offers.

As a buyer, I use "Best Offer" quite often. I offer about 20% less than the listed price. My offers are accepted about 95% of the time.

[pburn]

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@kataggr-44 wrote:

Even when make an offer is something forced on a seller and not a choice?

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Making an offer to a potential buyer is not forced on a seller. You might be thinking of "Best Offer." They are two different things. The OP is talking about making an offer.

[mypostingid15]

If you're not willing to accept a 5% off,  why bother? I just got an offer of a $20 on a $79.

[klhmdg]

I have never "made an offer" to a buyer watching a listing of less than 15%,

I also have about 50% of the offers I send accepted.

[beautifulbeauty2012]

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@kataggr-44 wrote:

Even when make an offer is something forced on a seller and not a choice?

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Choice, but with a restriction now. At first, I thought it was a good idea to reach watchers that way, but after trying that option, those watchers didn`t get motivated, and, after reading and watching what other say, it is the same for the majority - this type of solicitation doesn`t help selling. Looks like eBay caught that and decided to raise the requirement, so sellers cannot send an offer with less than 5%.

[upgradedendmills]

I run promotion sales regularly and it usually leads to getting a few offers.  I wonder if the 5% is off the original listed price or off the sale price?  I usually discount 11-17% on sale promos.

[beautifulbeauty2012]

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@pburn wrote:

As a buyer, I use "Best Offer" quite often. I offer about 20% less than the listed price. My offers are accepted about 95% of the time.

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We are talking about Sellers sending offers, not Buyers sending Best Offers.

[beautifulbeauty2012]

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@mypostingid15 wrote:

If you're not willing to accept a 5% off,  why bother? 

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Depending on an item, I could send what I thought was most appropriate. Do the math. If you pay 10%/12 for books FVF plus 10-12% (or whatever %-haven`t checked if that has a restriction now) for Promoted sold listing plus cost of item plus other expenses....Why even bother? 

[beautifulbeauty2012]

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@klhmdg wrote:

I have never "made an offer" to a buyer watching a listing of less than 15%,

I also have about 50% of the offers I send accepted.

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But most of your items are about $3 plus shipping, so of course offering less than 15% wouldn`t break the bank. In actual $ value my offers had higher value, but in percentage is less than 15.  It really depends on competition and what kind of item is being sold. 

[pburn]

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@beautifulbeauty2012 wrote:

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@pburn wrote:

As a buyer, I use "Best Offer" quite often. I offer about 20% less than the listed price. My offers are accepted about 95% of the time.

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We are talking about Sellers sending offers, not Buyers sending Best Offers.

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@beautifulbeauty2012 

Yes, I know that, as you can tell from the first paragraph of my original reply to you, where I said:

"Kind of pointless to send an offer that's 1% or 2% or 3% or 4% off the original price, isn't it? That really would be a waste of time for both you and the potential buyer. If you were making that kind of offer, it's not surprising you didn't get any sales from those 200 offers."

My point was, and still is, you--a seller--making an offer of 5% or less is not going to get you any sales when, as a buyer, I'm offering 20% less and having my offers accepted. 

[gamersbaystore]

Not a bad idea, as what's the point of sellers telling their buyers they accept offers, when in reality they don't.

If you're not willing to accept substantially less, then you shouldn't be using offers to begin with.

Too many sellers coming in these forums crying because, "Some buyer offered them $1 less on their $100 starting price."

As an example, I made an offer for $180 on a lot of Blu-Rays where the seller was asking $250. They responded with an offer of $245. lol, forget it. Why would they put a best offer in the listing if they aren't wiling to accept anything less?

In another case, I offered a starting bid of $500 on a lot of xbox games. The seller just declined, never made a counteroffer. Yet I was 100% willing to negotiate, and I think I made that pretty clear by offering such a large amount of money to begin with. Then they wonder why they can't get their items sold.

I'm starting to get the idea that the problem isn't with lowball offers from buyers, but rather oversized egos from sellers.

[beautifulbeauty2012]

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@gamersbaystore wrote:

Not a bad idea, as what's the point of sellers telling their buyers they accept offers, when in reality they don't.

If you're not willing to accept substantially less, then you shouldn't be using offers to begin with.

I do not accept offers, and don`t have that option in listings; I am talking about sending offers from Seller to Buyer. 

And what it has to do with sellers ego? Absolutely irrelevant. No sales for you (you`ve been sharing this extensively on the board about it) if you send/accept 50% offer or whatever you send/accept without ego, and no sales for me with modest offers. 

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[gamersbaystore]

I actually wasn't referring to you, but rather sellers in general and making offers as a whole. Sending offers to buyers? Same difference, and the principals remain the same. Again, if a seller isn't willing to accept less, then don't make offers to buyers, and don't use best offer. Problem solved.

It also has everything to do with sellers ego's. You have all these sellers crying because someone offered them 10 cents less than what they were originally asking. Please!

And for the record, what you feel is a modest offer, may not be what the buyer thinks is fair and reasonable. They have a perspective just like you.

Seller are like, "Someone offered me less than what I originally asked for! What a travesty!" Yeah, their egos are bigger than their heads.

As a buyer I try to avoid best offers, and its for the very reasons I stated above.